New system for determining the CO2 reactivity of petroleum coke in accordance with ISO 12981-1

The low weight of aluminium is often used to reduce the energy costs of manufactured products over their lifetime. This makes the production of aluminium increasingly important for the future. ISO 12981-1 is a method to determine (by loss in mass) the reactivity of calcined petroleum coke, used in the manufacture of anodes for the production of aluminium, to carbon dioxide. CARBOLITE has designed a special furnace for this application.

During the heating process, the vertical single zone tube furnace heats to 1000°C in well under an hour and is maintained at this temperature with an accuracy of ±1°C. The system is controlled by a high-quality digital PID controller; a separate over temperature protection controller prevents overheating of the system. The temperature inside the quartz tube is continuously monitored by a thermocouple. When the temperature is stable and measurement can commence an audible alarm sounds.A CO2 gas control system is incorporated which adjusts the supply pressure and gas flow rate by a digital mass flow controller. The CO2 gas flow is maintained in the quartz tube during analysis at a constant 50 l/h; the gas is switched by digital outputs in the temperature controller.

At a temperature of 1000 °C, the CO2 gas reacts with the coke to form carbon monoxide. This results in a weight loss of the sample which is used to determine the quality of the petroleum coke.

CARBOLITE manufactures complete custom-built solutions for quality assurance of high purity petroleum products for the petroleum and aluminum industries.